1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to picture hanger locating devices and more particularly to devices for marking the location on a wall for installation of a support for hanging an article such as a picture.
2. Prior Art
Objects intended to be displayed on a wall, such as pictures and minors, are typically hung on a nail in a wall with hanger hardware. Hanger hardware, such as a wire, hole/slot, D-ring, or saw-tooth, are attached to the back side of the object. The problem is locating where to install the nail on the wall so that when the picture is hung on the nail the picture is in the desired location. It is difficult to determine where on the wall to install the nail because the hanger hardware is on the back of the picture and not visible when deciding where to place the picture. Various devices have been conceived for marking the wall in the exact location where a nail should be positioned, but these devices all have serious issues that prevent them from being widely adopted. Aydelotte discloses a wall marking device in U.S. Pat. No. 5,398,906 which requires various configurations to accommodate the different hanger hardware commonly attached to pictures, such as wire, saw-tooth, D-Rings, and hole/slots. One such configuration requires several components including a spring. This complexity causes confusion and increases the cost of manufacturing. Other disclosures, such as Karon in U.S. Pat. No. 5,867,917, Muchnik in U.S. Pat. No. 6,952,887, and Prevost in U.S. Pat. No. 6,971,184, are highly complex and expensive to manufacture. In addition, U.S. Pat. No. 6,952,887 cannot be used on wire support hardware. Grillo disclosed a wall marking device in U.S. Pat. No. 7,185,442 that includes a target patch that sticks to the wall, marking the nail location. The target patch is not reusable, requiring the user to continuously purchase additional target patches. What all of the current art lacks is a wall marking device that is easy to use on all common hanger hardware, is simple in design, and low in cost to manufacture.